Salt Lake evening Democrat. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1885-1887, 1887-05-28

existence, DegOtten Dy another really
only begin with his birth. Consequently
we find in India confidence and dis
regard of death of which people in
Europe (and America) have no idea. 1t
is, indeed, dangerous thing to force up-
on mans mind by early teaching feeble
and untenable conceptions concerning
this important matter, and thus to in
capacitate him forever for the reception
of the more correct and tenable ideas.
For instance, to teach him that
he has only just become some
thing out of nothing, conse-
quently has been nothing throughout
an eternity, and yet should be
imperishable for the future, is just as to
teach him that he, although through and
through the creation of another, shall be
responsible through all eternity for his
commissions and omissions.
We have the undeniable fact that, ac-
cording to natural consciousness, man
not only fears death more than anything
for himself, but also mourns greatly over
the death of his dear ones, and this evil
IDENTIFY not egotistically over his own
loss, but out of commiseration for the
great misfortune that has befallen them !;
love-barren he who in such case does
not mourn nor shows grief. In parallel
line with this goes the fact that revenge
fulness, in its highest development, seeks
the death of the enemy as the greatest
evil that can be inflicted
Opinions vary according to time and
place; but the will OF Nature remains al
ways and everywhere the same; hence,
is to be taken into consideration before
all other things. In this it seems clearly
to declare that death is great evil. And
that death is serious thing is to be seen
from the fact that life, as everyone knows,
is no sport. 1 think we are not worthy
of any more than those two.
Indeed, the dread of death is indepen-
dent OF all intellect; the brute has it.,
though it does not know death. Every
thing born brings it with itself into the
world. Hence there is Unborn to every an
imal as the care for its self-preservation
and thus the dread OF its destruction it is
this latter, therefore, and not the mere
| Sinking from pain which shows itself in
the cautious anxiety with which every
brute seeks to protect itself, and still
more its offspring against any one likely
to endanger it. Why does the brute
| flee, tremble, and seek to hide itself?
Because it is instilled with will to live,
yet is doomed to eventual death and
only tries to gain time. Likewise, by
nature, with man. The greatest of evils.
the worst that anywhere can be threat
ened, is death, the greatest terror, the
terror of death. Nothing impels us so
irresistibly to the intensest sympathy as
to see fellow-being in danger OF life +;
nothing is more horrible than an ex-
ecution.
Knock at the tombs and ask the dead
whether they want to rise again; they
would answer by shaking their heads.
Voltaire says: Zone loves life; but
the Nothing has none the less its good
SIDE" And again: 81 don'tknow what
eternal life is, but this one is a sorry
joke"
II what causes us to see in death some
thing so very terrible were the thought
not non-existence, we should think with
equal terror of the time when we were
not yet. For it is irrefutably certain that
non-existence after death cannot be diff
ferent from non-eXistence before birth,
consequently no more deplorable. An
entire eternity has passed when
we were not yet; but that grieves
US by no means. But We deem
it hard, yea intolerable, that after the
momentary intermeZzo of an ephemeral
existence, second eternity shall follow
in which We shall be no more. Could il
be that this thirst for existence was due
to the fact that we had tasted OF it and
found it so delicious? Certainly not
awaken an Unsuitable longing for the
Paradise lost of non-existence. Then
we have the fact that we always find in
conjunction with the hope for an immor-
d. .s.--u4ia->~,ll- L-s4-,S-,, =, l~--
account.
The question as to our existence after
death has been raised and discussed in
print and speech ten thousand times Of
tener than that as to our existence before
our birth. Theoretically, however, the
one is just as legitimate and immediate
problem as the other; moreover, who
ever solves the one would at once under
stand the other clearly. We have fine
declamations as to how absurd and shock
ing it were to think that the kind, of man
which encompasses the universe and
has so many sublime thoughts be laid
into the grave with the body; but moth
ing is heard about the fact that this mind
has allowed whole eternity ere it made
itself manifest with those qualities, and
that the universe had for long to try to
get along without it. Yet, tn Intellect,
uncorrupted by Will, there presents itself
no question more naturally than this:
can endless time has elapsed before my
birth; what was | all that timer"